Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)

I presume there is a legal impediment under treaties or otherwise. The decision making process remains the same as when the EEC was established. The European constitution will address this issue once it is implemented. I do not have a problem with this because it is important that every citizen should know his or her representative's position prior to arriving at a decision at European Council on any topic.

When we conclude meetings of the Council, we are obliged by tradition rather than by rule to meet the Irish media. We are asked questions on the issues and we outline our stance on them. We must justify why we took that stance and how the conclusion was reached. It is a matter for them to communicate that to the people. However, we do not respond on the view taken by other states on an issue. Two large countries could adopt an attitude on an issue while three countries could take a different attitude. That is not obvious or clear but it is important that decisions should be publicised so that every citizen in the Union is aware of the representation made on his or her behalf and how the decisions were reached. That is good for democracy and fair to each citizen.

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